About ME

I’m a trained Medical Illustrator (MFA) from Rochester Institute of Technology with a Bachelors in Biology (BSc) from Temple University. With many years of experience in design, scientific illustration and data visualization, I’m now focusing on design strategy and human centered design at Booz Allen Hamilton.

I’ve collaborated with scientists and content experts from all over the world to create meaningful graphics that communicate and highlight the essence of stories. I specialize in combining diverse tools and methodologies that serve the story. Some examples are QGIS for maps, illustrator to render 2D art, photoshop and procreate to create raster graphics, figma to prototype apps and blender for 3d graphics. 

I’ve also worked on interactive pieces that involved wire-framing to asset creation, as well as a bit of coding, all while keeping the user experience in focus.

Previously I was at Science magazine and Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington DC.

 
Photograph of the owner of the website, Nirja Desai. Woman in her 30s looking towards the right with a smile, pink lipstick.

I live in Northern Virginia with my husband and our baby who loves to play the tabla with me.

Email me at contactnirja@gmail.com to get in touch!

 

Clients

The Scientist

Albert Einstein College of Medicine

Medstar Health

Fresh Communications

Inforgraphed

 

Certifications

User Experience Certificate (UXC) • Oct 2022

 

Awards

  • Premier Award at Bioimages 2021 by BioCommuniocations Association

  • Silver Medal in Digital Design Competition by Society for News Design

  • Winner in Data Visualization by Shorty Awards

    • Created all the maps submitted for the competition